The Truth About Shen
by kirbygirl123
Summary: Po has just defeated Shen and he wants to learn more about him. So when he seeks out the soothsayer, she tells him the story of how Shen came to be, and also more info about his past. Please R&R! Constructive criticism is welcome but no flames please! Book cover credits to envidia14 from Deviantart. Pairings are PoxTigress, CranexViper, and ShenxOC. Rated T to be safe.
1. Coming Back

**Disclaimer: I do not own any characters except for my OCs. I got some of my OCs' names from the H.I.V.E. series, which was created by Mark Walden. The names Fen, Jun, Mee, and Baojia belong to Domenic, a FanFiction user. :D And the rest respectfully belong to Dreamworks. ^_^**

It had been a long day for Po. He was very exhausted from fighting Lord Shen and his army of wolves. The Furious Five were worn out as well. Since it was evening, they decided to go back to the Valley of Peace, back to the Jade Palace with Master Shifu.

"Do you really think we should go back to Shifu _right_ after we just won an epic battle?" asked Po uncertainly as they were walking away from Gongmen City.

"Yes," said Tigress. "Don't you think Master Shifu would want to make sure that _everyone_ comes back in one piece, especially _you_?"

"Yeah," said Po, "but it's not like he _cries_ in his sleep every night he doesn't see us."

Everyone laughed at this. "I can't help but think of Shifu crying in his bed," Monkey snickered.

"Me either," said Mantis. "Or maybe Shifu got stressed out, gave up on finding inner peace, stopped practicing kung fu, and started eating more."

Everyone laughed even harder. "But we just saw Master Shifu," said Viper. "Didn't we? And he sure didn't look fat, or looked like he forgot some kung fu either."

Everyone stopped laughing. "Yeah, that's true," shrugged Monkey, "but there's nothing wrong with poking fun _back_ at him, right? After all, he did have some fun teasing Po, don't you think Po?"

"He did," Po said solemnly. "He did. But his days of teasing me are over, which I'm very glad of."

Everyone laughed again. "I'm sorry for teasing you about not being able to touch your toes," Crane apologized.

"And not being able to _see_ his toes," Monkey muttered. Everybody cracked up at Monkey's joke.

"I remember that comment," Po laughed. "It was one of those sayings always stuck in my head."

"And I'm sorry for slamming the door on you," Tigress said sadly.

"Oh, I forgive you," said Po, "but will you forgive _me_ if we decide to stay in Gongmen City for a few more days?"

They stopped walking, looked at each other, and then at Po. "How come you want to stay here?" asked Viper. "Don't you miss Shifu, or your dad, or your home...at all?"

Po thought about it for a moment, and then he said, "I _do_ miss them, don't get me wrong! But I just wanted to find out about something. That's all…"

Tigress came over to Po and put a hand on his shoulder. "What are you trying to find out?" she whispered.

He sighed. "Well…you know how I found out that _Lord Shen_ was the one who killed my mom? I just wanted to find out more about my past…and why Lord Shen killed my mom and tried to kill me. I wonder if I ever had a dad at_ all_…and I wonder what happened to him if I actually **did** have one."

"If I were Po," said Mantis, "I would've done the same thing as well!"

"So…everyone agrees on staying in Gongmen City for a few more days?" asked Tigress.

"Yes," the others replied, and they all turned around and started walking back to the city.

"So…do you think Master Shifu would understand if Po wants to stay here for a while?" said Crane.

"I hope so," said Monkey. "It's not like Po's going to stay because of the _food_, right Po?"

Everyone laughed again. "Well, I actually never thought of that," Mantis said. "I'm hungry!"

"Actually," said Po, "that's another reason why I want to stay here. You can't always think on an empty stomach, can you?"

They all laughed at each other. "Of course not," Tigress said sweetly.

Po and the Furious Five finally reached Gongmen City after 10 more minutes of walking. It was almost evening time, and the sun had started to set. It was time for dinner, and everybody was starting to get hungry.

"Where do you guys want to eat?" Po asked.

"What about that noodle restaurant over there?" said Viper. "It looks good to me!"

"It reminds me of my dad…" Po smiled. "I'm sure their noodles taste good too, Viper, but I always know that my dad's noodles are the best." He licked his lips. "Speaking of my dad, I wonder how he's doing by himself…"

"Speaking of _food_," said Monkey, "I wonder if Shifu ate some of my cookies while I was gone…"

"Shifu wouldn't do such a thing," Crane said scornfully. "But just in case he attempted to, which I doubt very much, I moved it to another location."

"Like your _stomach_," Monkey said amusingly, yet annoyed at the same time.

"No," said Crane. "I put the jar in _your room_."

"Really?! I didn't see it in my room," Monkey said surprisingly.

"Well…I moved it right before we left, Monkey. I'll show you when we get back," Crane said.

"OK," said Monkey. "I just hope that you didn't snatch any before you put it in my room."

"No, I didn't," Crane said, and rolled his eyes.

They came over to the noodle restaurant and found a table of five. They each took a chair and sat down.

"Um, Po?" asked Tigress. "I'm just wondering, but if we're going to stay in the city, we're going to need to find a place to stay."

Po froze in his seat. Oh shoot, he thought. _Why_ did I forget about that? Ugh…I was so worried about getting some dinner, and now we don't even have a place to live in. This is great. Now the Dragon Warrior and the Furious Five are going to be known as the _Hobo Warrior_ and the _Vagabond Five_. Man, you've just _gotta_ be kidding me! Now what do I do?!

"Are you OK?" she repeated. "You don't seem OK."

"Um…" he said embarrassingly, "I actually never thought of that. I don't really have a place in mind."

"Oh…" Mantis said sadly.

"Here comes our food!" Monkey said happily. A waiter came to their table and served six bowls of noodles. "Thank you," said Viper. "You're welcome," the waiter said, and he left.

"Darn," Crane sighed. "I wonder if anyone has relatives in Gongmen City…?"

"I don't think so," Viper muttered.

"Nope," Tigress said. "I was raised in an orphanage."

"I think my relatives live somewhere _else_," Mantis said.

"Er…I haven't seen any _geese _or _pandas_ around here," said Po.

Tigress smiled. "We should eat our dinner," she said. "The soups are getting cold."

"True that," Po smirked at Tigress. "We should just…dig in."

And so everyone ate their meal in silence, since everyone was so hungry and tired. "Man, this is SO good!" said Viper. "But Po's noodles are _still _better."

"Thanks," Po smiled sheepishly as he slurped up the last of his noodles.

Everyone else was done with their soup as well, and placed it down when they were done. Just to make sure everyone _was_ done, Tigress asked, "Is everybody done?"

"Yes," they all said. They all stood up from the table and Monkey put a tip on the table for the waiter.

"I wonder where we can find a place to stay…" Po muttered as they were walking in the city.

"I'm not sure if there are any hotels in Gongmen City," Crane said hesitantly.

"I doubt it," said Mantis.

"Hey, wait a minute," Viper said. "What about that soothsayer we met earlier?"

Po looked at Viper. "What about the soothsayer?" he asked.

"Well, um…I was thinking that we could stay with her," she suggested. "Since Lord Shen's gone, she's probably pretty lonely, don't you think?"

Tigress hesitated for a moment. "I know the soothsayer appears to be nice and all, but how do we know if she still doesn't work for Lord Shen?"

"And elderly," muttered Monkey.

"Just because she was _always hanging around_ Lord Shen doesn't mean that she actually _served_ him," Po answered.

"Really?!" Mantis was shocked.

"Besides, Lord Shen is dead," said Viper, "so why would you serve someone that's dead? Especially if they were as cruel as Lord Shen…"

"Master Oogway is dead as well," said Monkey, "yet I am sure that Master Shifu and all of us still serve him…in a way."

"You have a point, Monkey," said Crane. "So…are we deciding on staying at the soothsayer's house?"

"Wait…that mysterious _goat_ actually has a _house_ to live in?!" cried Mantis.

Everyone looked at him. "What?" he said sheepishly. "She looked like one of those fortune tellers on the streets or in the alleys and tents!"

"Well, yeah, she did," admitted Po. "In fact, I thought _she_ was a _he_!"

Everyone laughed at that memory. "Me too," said Tigress. "But _that_ soothsayer is a special one."

"Yeah, as in serving the royal family," Monkey remembered.

"See?! I knew she worked for Lord Shen!" said Tigress triumphantly.

"But look Tigress, she served the whole family, but she was really serving the _king_ and the _queen_," pointed out Viper.

"But still…" Tigress frowned, "Lord Shen was the _heir_ to the throne until his parents banished him from his home. Why he got banished, or how, I don't really know. And besides, when Lord Shen was still around, she always stuck with him through thick and thin."

"I don't think she had a choice, though," said Crane, "because since she served the royal family, she had to take care of Lord Shen as well because he belonged to the royal family too."

"What I meant," Viper replied, "is that she took care of Lord Shen, but she didn't always agree with everything he said or did."

"Well, that's true," said Tigress, "but do you think she would want to tell Po?"

"Why wouldn't she?" Viper asked. "Po has a right to know such things."

"Yeah, but what if she doesn't _want_ to tell?" questioned Mantis.

"I think the only reasons that she won't tell Po is because one, Lord Shen swore her to secrecy; two, she doesn't want Po to be scared; or three, she doesn't know," said Monkey.

"I don't like the last two reasons," Po said scornfully. "And why would I be _scared_? I'm not a baby, you know. And I _really_ want to find out how the heck I got into a radish basket and ended up having a goose for a dad."

"Aww…really?!" said Viper. "How cute is that?!"

"I know right?" said Monkey as he was snickering.

"If the soothsayer REALLY doesn't know what happened to my parents, then there's no point in staying here for a few days," Po said a little bit angrily.

"Yeah, but the problem is, we'll **never** know if _she_ knows or not unless we consult her," said Crane. "So let's give it a try."

"Okay," said Tigress, who had finally given in to the fact that the soothsayer was a trustworthy person to ask. "But does anyone know where she lives?"

"I think she would be in the palace," Mantis suggested.

"No, she actually doesn't leave there," said Po. "She has her own house to live in.

Everyone looked at him. "What?" he said. "I really _do_ know where she lives!" he repeated. "She lives in the remains of the same panda village…where she said I actually lived before Mom died."

Viper's eyes widened up. "Wow…" she mouthed. "Can we go with you, Po?"

"If you want," Po shrugged. "I don't really mind, you know."

"If you want, when you're talking to the soothsayer, we'll give you some privacy," Tigress suggested.

"Um, OK…thanks, you guys." Po smiled at them.

"So…where is this village?" Monkey looked around.

"It's over there, in the forest." Po pointed to a lot of trees to his right.

"Whoa! I didn't see that coming!" said Mantis jokingly.

Viper laughed at Mantis. "Even _I _saw that coming!" she laughed.

Mantis narrowed his eyes at her. "That's because you're bigger than _me_…"

"Argument aside, you two," Po glanced at the two of them quarreling.

"OK…" Viper hissed her tongue at Mantis and slithered away, close to Crane.

After 15 minutes of walking, they finally noticed where they were. They were somewhat deep in the forest, with barely any light seeping through the trees. Here and there were remains of huts, and there were burnt wooden planks everywhere.

After a while, Po broke the ice. He said, "Here we are guys. This is my village."

**A/N: So...what did you guys think of the story? Please R&R :) Much appreciated :3 If you liked the story I'll continue putting up more chapters. If not...well, let's not get to that, shall we? :P**


	2. An Old Friend

**I'm considering of dividing this story into parts. I don't really know how many, but I'm thinking around 3 parts. Kind of like how some of the books in the Redwall series had 3 parts (I think they called it books instead of parts)? And one more thing! (JCA reference) I'm sorry that it's been a long time since the last chapter. I promise that after today I'll start putting up chapters more quickly (although I can't guarantee an exact date). Finals and Christmas break were pretty hectic and so that's why I had no time to put this chapter up. D:  
**

**Now here's the 2nd chapter :)  
**

"Oh, Po," said Viper, "that's - that's so…sad! There's almost nothing left now…"

"You're right," Po said sadly.

"So Po," said Crane, "where does the soothsayer live?"

"I am right here," said a gentle voice.

"Where did _that_ come from?" Po asked, looking around.

"Was that the soothsayer?" Mantis wondered.

"Po...turn around. And you too, Mantis," Tigress said. "I think we have found our soothsayer."

"Okay..." Po and Mantis said, and they turned around. Po widened his eyes when he saw the soothsayer; Mantis was puzzled about what kind of animal she was. The soothsayer smiled at them.

"Hello, Po," she said. "It is strange to see you all again. And even more strange that you all managed to find this village...and me, of course."

Po smiled. "So I guess we met up again, huh?"

The soothsayer nodded at him. "Yes, we have," she said. I am sure that you have not eaten dinner yet...am I wrong?"

"Oh, we just did," Monkey replied. "Thanks anyway."

"But Monkey, we need a place to stay, remember?" Viper hissed in his ear. Monkey murmured in reply, "Oh right...I forgot about that. But are you positive that we can trust her, Viper?"

She nodded. "I'm sure she trusts us, so we should trust her too. Besides, she is probably as old as Master Oogway."

Monkey shrugged. "I guess you're right," he whispered. Then he said to the soothsayer, "Do you mind if we decided to stay at your house for at least the next few days?"

The soothsayer shook her head. "I don't mind at all," she said, and smiled. "It's been a while since I've had visitors."

"Thank you, soothsayer," said Tigress.

"You are most welcome," she replied. "Come follow me to my house."

And so the soothsayer walked past them and kept on walking forward. The others were following her close behind.

"So how have you been, soothsayer?" asked Po.

"I am well, thank you Po," she said gratefully. "How about you?"

"I'm feeling tired," he muttered. "Especially after I just fought Shen..."

"Soothsayer?" asked Viper. "Have you always lived here?

"This is where I grew up," she said softly. "But now I am the only one that lives around here, as you can see. Why? Did you think that I lived in the palace with Shen the whole time?"

"I thought so," Mantis said.

"Me too," said Po, "until he knocked me out with his cannon and somehow I ended up in her house."

"You mean you were floating down the river and I fished you out of it," the soothsayer corrected him. "And by the way, I still recall that very well. I helped you remember your real home and I helped you to master inner peace."

"Yes, you did," Po said. "Thanks for helping me."

"You're welcome," she replied. "Oh, and by the way, my house is near. Watch out for wooden planks around here." The soothsayer gestured to the burnt wooden planks on the black grass that surrounded it.

"Thanks for the warning," said Crane as he started hovering above the ground. Mantis looked at him and muttered, "Man, I wish I had wings..."

"It's OK, Mantis," Viper said. "You can do things that Crane can't do."

"Say what?!" Crane yelled 20 feet above Viper.

"Um...nothing!" she called up to him.

"Nice going," murmured Mantis.

"Thanks," hissed Viper, and winked at him.

"Wow...I feel so bad for the pandas that had to leave this village," Tigress said sadly as she looked at the surroundings. "I can't believe Shen was evil enough to kill a lot of them for no reason!"

"I think he _did _have a reason," Po said. "I just don't know why."

"Po is right," the soothsayer replied. "Shen did have a reason for doing that, although I think that his reason is not very..._legitimate_."

"But why?" Mantis asked. "Was he like, jealous of pandas because they're white, black, and Asian? Or did he hate them because they eat too much bamboo?"

Po rolled his eyes. "Really, Mantis?"

"No, Mantis," said the soothsayer. "It's not because of that."

Just then they reached the soothsayer's house, which was very small. "Wow..." Tigress said in awe. "Have you been living in this for a long time?"

The soothsayer raised an eyebrow at her but merely said, "Yes, for 70 years." She walked up the steps to the front porch and opened the door for them. Crane landed on the ground and said, "Whew! That was tiring!"

The soothsayer then walked through the door first and Po and the Furious Five followed suit. As she was heading to the kitchen to make tea, Po looked around the room. They were in the living room. He noticed that it was very simple; there were no fancy decorations or elegant furnishings anywhere, although there were some antique silverware and photos of the soothsayer's family in the living room. There were also pictures of Shen as a young peacock. _I gotta remember to check out that room again another time,_ thought Po as he walked to the kitchen.

"You know," said Monkey, "I think I'm still hungry. Are you?"

Po patted his stomach. "Yep, I'm still hungry too."

The soothsayer smiled. "See? I knew you would still be hungry. So who else is still hungry? I'll make some noodles."

"I'm full already, but thanks," said Tigress politely, yet Po noticed that her voice sounded a bit strained. He turned his head towards her and raised an eyebrow. Tigress met his gaze and mouthed "Later," and then walked over to the soothsayer, who was chopping radishes and putting them into the pot. She then asked, "Do you need any help?"

"No, but thank you for asking," the soothsayer replied without looking up. "You seem tired, Tigress. Do you want to take a nap?

Tigress put her hand to her forehead. It didn't feel hot, but she felt like she was lightheaded. "Yeah, I think so," she said. "I'm not feeling very well right now."

"OK then," said the soothsayer. Then she called to Po and said, "Po? Could you cook the noodles for me while I accompany Tigress to a room?"

"Sure," Po replied, and stood up from the table and walked over to the stove. Mantis, Monkey, Viper, and Crane were seated at the table and were talking.

"I wonder what's wrong with Tigress," wondered Viper.

"She seemed OK before..." Monkey muttered.

"She looked like she had a headache," Mantis observed.

"I hope she's OK," Po said while watching the noodles boil.

"Maybe she's just worn out from the fighting," Crane suggested.

Po shrugged as he was stirring the noodles. "Well, whatever happened to her, let's just hope that she gets better."

"True that," Viper agreed sadly. "Today, she's anything _but_ normal."

"Yeah, you're right!" said Crane. "Maybe it has something to do with Po..." He turned around and glanced at Po, who had already turned around when he heard his name mentioned.

"What about me?" he asked suspiciously.

"Oh, nothing..." Crane replied sheepishly.

"Come on, Crane," Po said. "I've got a hot pot full of soup and noodles. Just spill the beans already."

"I think he's talking about...you and Tigress, if you get my drift," said Viper, "but I don't see what this has to do with Tigress's condition."

"I know what you mean Viper," said Po. "We're just friends, Crane. Really!"

"Uh huh...sure..." Crane muttered.

"Crane, are you OK?" Mantis hissed.

Crane narrowed his eyes at him. "Of course I am. Why?"

"Never mind," he muttered.

"6 servings of noodle soup, coming right up!" called Po as he was walking over and passed a bowl to each one of them. Then he gave them some chopsticks to eat with.

"Enjoy the noodles," Po said as he sat down in front of his own bowl.

"I bet these are going to taste good!" said Viper. "Because the soup sure smells good!"

* * *

Tigress was being escorted by the soothsayer out of the kitchen and into the living room, where the soothsayer sat down in a sofa and gestured Tigress to sit in the other one. Tigress sat down and looked at her.

"Did something happen to you?" asked the soothsayer.

"I don't really know, actually," Tigress said honestly. "It just came all of a sudden."

"Oh," the soothsayer replied. "That is most unusual."

"Yeah, it is...I wasn't tired when we fought Shen a while ago, but I guess now it's starting to take a toll on me."

"Perhaps you should take a nap for a while, hmm?"

"Sure, I guess...if it helps with the headache."

The soothsayer stood up and helped Tigress get up. Then she led Tigress through the hallway and into one of the guest rooms, which appeared to be very simple. It had 6 beds and a window that was right in front of Tigress. It also had a cabinet and a closet.

"Here is your room," she said.

"Thanks," Tigress replied, and walked over to the closest bed, flipped part of the blanket, and slipped into it. Tigress laid in bed for a while, and the soothsayer watched over her just to make she was OK. After five minutes Tigress said, "I think I feel a bit better now. Maybe resting was a good idea after all."

"I see," said the soothsayer. "Would you like some noodles?"

"No thanks, but I can smell them from here," Tigress replied.

"Really?" She sniffed the air. "The smell's strong! Po sure is a great cook!" Then she looked down at Tigress and asked, "Are you OK staying in bed?"

Tigress nodded. "Good. I'll see how you're doing in a hour." She nodded again. The soothsayer walked out of the room and Tigress smiled.

"Po is a good cook," she said to herself.

* * *

"It seems like dinner was served just in time," said the soothsayer as she walked into the kitchen and sat down. "I could smell it from the hallway."

Po was a bit nervous. "That's not bad, is it?" he asked as he poured some soup into a bowl and put it down in front of the soothsayer.

"Don't be silly, Po," the soothsayer replied. "In fact, the stronger the smell, the better the soup turns out to be."

"Really?" said Viper. "Maybe that's why Po's noodles always tasted so good."

Po made a bowl for himself and started eating. "Hmm...seems like it tasted better than last time," he muttered as he slurped up some noodles.

The soothsayer ate a little bit of her soup and said, "Actually, you make better noodles than I do."

He choked on his noodles. "Really?" he said. "I do?"

"Yes, Po, you do," the soothsayer said proudly. "Besides, noodles aren't my specialty anyway."

Everyone finished eating their noodles and started putting their bowls in the sink. "Um, just wondering," said Viper, "but where do we stay for the night?"

"In the guest room," the soothsayer replied. "Do you want me to show you where it is?"

"No thank you," Viper answered. "But you can tell us how to get there."

"Sure. When you walk out of the kitchen, turn left, and then the guest room will be the first door on the right."

"OK," said Monkey. "We should go then. I'm tired."

"Me too," mumbled Mantis. "It's been a long day."

Everyone was walking out of the kitchen, but Crane noticed Po wasn't following them and turned around. "Po, are you coming with us?" he asked.

"Yeah, but I wanted to talk to the soothsayer about something," he replied.

"Oh OK," Crane said. "We'll meet you in the guest room after you're done."

Po nodded as he left. The soothsayer was busy cleaning the bowls and turned around to see Po still sitting there. "You're still here?" she asked suspiciously.

"Uh, yeah," he said. "I wanted to ask you something."

"How interesting," she replied as she resumed washing the bowls. "I wanted to ask you something too."

"What is it?" Po asked.

"What brings you and the Furious Five here?"

"Well," he said, "I wanted to learn about my past."

She turned off the water and peered at Po. "You mean...you forgot? Everything that you recalled and what I told you?" The soothsayer was shocked. _Surely Po can remember things!_ she thought.

"No, I didn't forget, soothsayer. I never did. Well, I used to think I did, but I still remembered," Po said. "I was just wondering if you knew anything else about me."

The soothsayer finished washing the bowls and put then on a rack. Then she made herself another cup of tea and took a seat across from Po.

"So that's what you meant," the soothsayer replied, and laughed. "I thought your memory was worse than mine! And to think that I am already in my 70s..." She laughed again.

"Anyway," she continued once she calmed herself down, "you already know that Shen killed your mom, yes?"

Po nodded. He was proud of himself for remembering that.

"Well...even though I know she died for sure, since I was there to see it myself, but I don't know where your father is. But if there is one thing I know for sure Po, it's that your father **isn't** dead."

"He's not?" Po asked incredulously.

The soothsayer tried to reassure him. "Yes, Po, I am sure of it. If I was unsure, I wouldn't be telling you this."

"But...if he is still alive, then why didn't he come back for me?"

"Even I do not know the answer to that," she said sadly. "Perhaps it is because he assumed that you were killed along with your mom. I'm sure that if he knew you were still alive, he would search for you. I'm positive. He loved you very much and when Shen attacked his village, he actually cried because he wasn't sure if he was going to see you again."

"Oh..." Po said. He was sad. He felt bad because his dad had cried for him, and that it must be painful to not know what happened to one's son. Po stood up and started walking out of the kitchen with his head down, but then he turned around and said, "Actually, I wanted to ask you one more thing before I go."

"Go ahead," the soothsayer said. Her eyes were closed.

"I'm just wondering, but was Shen as evil as he was now when he was younger?"

The soothsayer thought for a moment. Then she said, "I'll tell you that another day, Po. You should rest now."

"Good idea," said Po. "I'll just leave you in peace. Good night, soothsayer."

"Good night, Po," she said, and he walked away.

**So, what did you think? Let me know by reviewing :) And of course, I do not own KFP. :P**


	3. Tigress's Dream

**Thanks for the reviews and critiques! Much appreciated. It makes me feel happy that I'm getting feedback. :D Oh and just a heads up, but it's going to take a while before the second part of the story begins. That is, we're going to take a time wrap to the past. And obviously you know who's past we're talking about. XD And after this update, it's going to take a while for the next chapter to come around...you know, because of school. But I'll try my best. I promise. I'm really sorry for the slow updates and I'm hoping that it'll become more frequent.  
**

**And now, without further ado, is the third chapter. ;)**

Po went through the hallway and into the guest room, where the Furious Five were.

"There you are!" said Monkey.

"What were you doing?" Mantis asked.

"I was talking to the soothsayer," Po replied.

"Shh," said Viper. "Tigress is sleeping."

Po walked over to Tigress's bed and looked down. He noticed that she looked tired and frail. _I hope she's OK_, he thought.

"Wow, she looks worn out," he whispered.

"I know," Viper agreed. "But I'm confused. What made her so exhausted?"

"That's what's weird," Mantis noted. "Tigress usually doesn't get tired that easily. This is the first time in years it's happened."

Po thought to himself as he looked at Tigress. Then he realized that her face was wrinkled up and that there were trails of water coming from her eyes. _Wait a minute_, he thought. _Tigress is crying!_

"Uh, guys?" he said. "I think Tigress is crying in her sleep."

"This is interesting...she almost never gets very emotional," said Monkey. "She always seem tough."

"I know right?" said Po. "She's totally hardcore!"

"Maybe she does get emotional, Monkey; she probably just doesn't show it," Viper said thoughtfully. "And that's really hard to do sometimes."

"I guess so," Monkey shrugged.

"Maybe she's worried about Master Shifu?" Crane suggested.

"Should we just wake her up already?" asked Po urgently. "She looks like she's about to cry again."

Tigress was squirming in her sleep, and her face started to wrinkle up again. She also started to sniffle, and water started to build up in her eyes.

"Yeah...you're right. We should," said Viper. "I think she's having a nightmare."

Po shook Tigress softly, and she stopped sniffing. A few seconds later she slowly opened her eyes. She looked confused. "What happened?" Tigress asked. "Wait...why am I crying?"

"It's OK, Tigress," Monkey reassured her. "It was just a dream."

Tigress slowly sat up in bed. "I know," she said slowly, "but it felt so real...I actually remember everything that happened in it."

"What was it about?" Mantis asked.

"Well..." Tigress began, "I saw a village with pandas in it..."

Po froze. _She's dreaming about my past!_ he thought. _That's weird...why is she?_

"...and I saw Shen there too. He had a ton of wolves there." Tigress shivered in her bed. "And the pandas were running away from them. The whole village was on fire, and one of the pandas was telling his wife to take their child and run. So she took a baby panda and ran for their lives. The child was wailing really loud and the mother tried to calm it down. Shen saw them escaping and told some of the wolves to chase them down. It was snowing in the forest, so it made her run slower than normal."

"They kept running and soon Shen and the wolf gang had lost them. They didn't stop running until they saw an open box of...radishes...inside a cart of boxes."

"Radishes?" Mantis said. "I wonder how there were radishes in the middle of a forest..."

"It was actually on the edge of the forest, next to a road," Tigress corrected him. "Anyway...the mom was walking towards the box and put the baby panda in the radishes. At first he was happy because he was with his mom. But then his mom said goodbye and she left him. Just then she heard Shen and the wolves approaching, and she started running away again, but only to distract him from the little panda. So Shen saw her and started chasing her down and then...I heard a scream. And that was it."

After that she started crying again. Everyone else tried to comfort her but she still kept crying.

"I know it was a bad dream," said Viper, "but at least it never happened."

"Actually..." Po said reluctantly, "that did happen."

Everyone looked at him. "What do you mean, Po?" asked Tigress. "So I was dreaming about something that really happened?"

"Yes," he replied. "The little baby panda in the radishes...that was me."

No one spoke a word. The room was silent for several minutes. Then Monkey broke the ice and said "Wow...so that means Tigress was dreaming about _you._"

"Mantis, can we talk for a little bit?" Crane whispered. "I think something's up."

"OK," Mantis replied. "Let's go talk in the corner over there."

Crane and Mantis went over to the other side of the room to talk. Po raised an eyebrow at them but continued talking to Viper, Monkey, and Tigress.

"Yes, she was," he said. "That was my mom she was talking about."

Viper looked hurt. "But...Po...you never told us," she said sadly. "Now I feel really sad."

Po felt guilty about not telling his friends about his life. _I'm sorry_, he thought. _I was __going to...I just didn't feel like it was the right time to talk about it._

"Well..." he said, "I _was_ going to tell you...but I didn't want to stress you guys out. I mean, we just fought Shen, right?"

"It's OK, Po," said Monkey. "We understand."

"Oh...OK," Viper said, and nodded at the same time. "It's just that it seemed like you didn't trust us."

"You're among friends, remember?" Tigress said softly.

Po smiled. "Yes, we are."

* * *

While everyone else was talking with Tigress, Mantis and Crane were having their own conversation.

"So...what did you want to talk about?" Mantis asked.

"Well, I feel like something isn't right here. Something's fishy."

"I know what you mean. This isn't like her."

"This is because of Po, isn't it?" said Crane.

"Yeah, it is," Mantis agreed. "I think she likes him."

"That's pretty obvious...it's why she's being weird," Crane muttered.

"Weird? There's nothing wrong with liking someone...are you feeling all right?"

Crane nodded. "I'm fine. Really!"

Mantis wasn't convinced. "No, I don't think so. I know you. You haven't been yourself lately. What's gotten into you? You're not sick, right?

"No," Crane replied.

"Then what is it?"

"Well..." Crane hesitated. "Don't tell anyone, OK?"

Mantis nodded. "Of course. You trust me, don't you?"

"Obviously! Otherwise, I wouldn't be saying this. Anyway...I like someone."

Mantis didn't say a word. He was shocked. Crane saw that he was silent and asked, "Are you OK?"

"Yeah...I'm just surprised," Mantis said sheepishly. "So who do you like?"

Crane hesitated. "It's...Viper," he muttered.

Mantis smiled. "That's cute. I knew it should have been you and Viper."

"Oh...you knew?" Crane laughed nervously.

"Yeah, of course! We're best friends, remember?" Mantis said. "Besides, Viper's not a bad choice."

"Yeah..." Crane sighed. "Do you think she's aware that I like her?"

"I'm not sure about that one. What do you think?"

"Well...so far not really, I guess. She doesn't try to avoid me or anything, but she doesn't usually come up to me either."

"That could be a good sign. I truly do not know how to determine if she likes you or not. But assuming she does, she probably wouldn't tell you about her feelings right away. Maybe she's feeling exactly what you're feeling right now. Who knows?"

"But...but what if she _doesn't_ like me?" Crane asked hesitantly. "I don't want to be rejected."

"Oh, Crane," said Mantis. "You were never one to hope for the best, were you?"

"It's not that. It's just that...I can't help but feel like there's always going to be something bad."

"It's because you're what they call a pessimistic," said Mantis. "You always focus on the negative side of things."

"I do _not_!" Crane said firmly. "It's just that...there are times when it seems hard to hope for the best. Like you feel like you're in a hole and you can't climb out. Besides, life isn't a fairy tale."

"I never said it was. I'm just saying that if you look at life in a negative way, you won't be able to find any happiness," Mantis pointed out. "I mean, look at Po."

Crane turned around and looked at Po. He saw Po laughing and Tigress was smiling up at him. Then he looked back at Mantis and said, "So, you're saying that Po has more happiness than I do?"

"Well, he _does_ look happy," Mantis admitted. "The thing is, I think if you start being optimistic, things will get better."

"Really?"

"Yes. Here's a quote that I learned from when I was young. '_Yesterday was history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift._'"

"You sounded like Master Oogway just then," said Crane.

"I did? How interesting...anyway, when did you start liking Viper?"

"About a couple years ago," Crane muttered.

"Was it love at first sight?" Mantis asked.

"No, not exactly. We just finished training with Master Shifu and I was lonely and by myself, and she came up to me and asked if we could be friends. And I said yes."

"Oh...that's sweet of her. I personally think that she does like you."

"Do you really think so? She also seems to hang around Po although too..."

"I do. But seriously, do you think she likes you?"

Crane sighed. "Honestly...I don't really know if she does or not. I can't tell."

"But what are your feelings leaning towards? Yes or no?"

"Well, for wishful thinking, I'd be leaning towards yes. But I don't think it's no either. Like I said, I _really_ don't know. But in a way, I can kind of sense that she does."

"Am I the only one that knows about this?" asked Mantis.

"Yup. And don't go around telling anybody," Crane warned. "And I mean nobody."

"Got it. Anyway, I wish you luck with Viper. I hope things go well," Mantis said sincerely.

"Thanks, Mantis. You know, I'm glad I told someone about this. I felt like I was about to bubble over just thinking about this," Crane said sheepishly.

"And I'm glad you're feeling better," said Mantis, and smiled.

Just then Mantis saw that Tigress was slowly getting out of bed and and he said, "Hey, it looks like Tigress is getting out of bed!"

Crane turned around and saw Monkey, Po, and Viper helping her get out of bed. "Should we go help her?"

"Nah, she already has 3 people helping her," Mantis said, and winked.

Crane raised an eyebrow at him. "What are you talking about?"

"I bet she's heading towards the kitchen," he said with a smirk.

"What makes you think that?"

"Well...usually when people have just woken up, they need to find something to eat. At least, that's what happens to me."

"That happens to me too, but not always."

"Let's go tell the soothsayer that she's up," said Mantis.

"OK, I'll come with you," Crane said, and they both stood from their place and headed out of the room quickly.

* * *

"Wow...it's such a small world, isn't it?" said Po. "I mean, Shen knew the soothsayer because she was his nanny, and the soothsayer knew your parents, and your parents obviously knew you too."

"It is," Monkey agreed.

"So, I heard you have figurines of us in your bedroom," Tigress said slyly. "Is that true?"

"Uh...yeah...I do," Po said sheepishly. "Why?"

"I think that's pretty cool," she replied. "You never knew you were going to end up meeting us in person, huh?"

"Of course not!" Po laughed. "The first time I came to the Jade Palace, I thought it was a dream come true."

"Tigress, are you hungry?" asked Monkey.

Tigress looked down as her stomach growled slowly. "Yeah, I think so."

"I had a feeling you were going to get hungry," he replied. "Do you need help getting out of bed?"

"Yeah, if you don't mind," Tigress said.

Monkey and Po helped Tigress get out of bed and Tigress tried to stand on her feet. "Whew, I feel better now," said Tigress. "I don't feel like I have a headache anymore."

Then she noticed that Crane and Mantis had risen from their spot in the corner and were heading towards the door. They were talking to each other as they walked out of the room and it seemed like they were heading to the kitchen again.

"Now, what the heck was that about?" asked Monkey. "Seems like Mantis and Crane are up to something."

"I wonder what it is," Po said. "If only we were in on their plans..."

"Maybe they're hungry too?" Tigress suggested.

"Who knows?" Po shrugged. "Let's go see what they're up to, and at the same time get some food."

Tigress, Po, and Monkey then walked out of the room.

**Did anyone realize Viper wasn't saying anything? You'll find out what happened to her in the next chapter. :P In the meantime, feel free to R&R. Feedback is very appreciated, whether it's constructive criticism or praise. But no flames please! D:**


	4. Storytime

**Hey guys! Sorry for the really, really, really slow update! I've been busy with school again, but nevertheless I've always tried to remember my stories and my readers. Oh, and by the way, I ****can't believe that I'm already on the 4th chapter! :O I never knew I would get this far. Thanks for all the reviews I've been getting, and I especially give thanks to my (still?) dedicated readers Synchronized Harmony and pandamaster97720 :)**

**Now I'll let you see what happened to Viper...**

While Monkey, Po, and Tigress were headed to the kitchen, Viper stayed in the room and was sitting on one of the beds. She had been thinking to herself about the day's events. _Something seems fishy,_ she thought. _It doesn't seem right. Why would T__igress have a dream about Po? Is it supposed to mean something?_

Viper couldn't help but feel this way. She was confused about what had just happened. _Tigress is never one to be sentimental._ _I wonder what made her change. Maybe it does have something to do with Po._

Then she thought about herself. She also had feelings for somebody too, which in her case was Crane. She liked Crane, but Viper never had the guts to tell him about her feelings. She was just so nervous and afraid of his reaction. And yet part of her was very positive that he liked her back. _There's nothing to be afraid about, _one side of her said. _He's showing the signs too. Crane's just shy about his feelings because he's afraid of _your_ reaction too. You're not the only one. You should just tell him already.  
_

**_But what if he doesn't? _**her other side said. **_What if he only thinks of you as a friend?_**

_Don't be silly. I'm sure he likes you too._

**_But still...I don't want him to be hurt. That would make our friendship worse. And then he wouldn't even trust me anymore!  
_**

_I don't think he'll be surprised by it. In fact, I think he would be happy you told him.  
_

**_Are you sure? They always say it's better to be safe than sorry._**

_But good things can come out of bad things.  
_

**_Hmph...fine. I'll try it. But if something bad happens, I am blaming you for it._**

_OK then...we shall see what happens then.  
_

Viper couldn't also help thinking about the signs of love she found in Crane. She noticed him staring at her occasionally, and sometimes when he talked to her Viper felt that he considered her as more than a friend. She also noticed that she and Crane had a lot of things in common and that they were able to get along easily. Viper was also able to make Crane happy whenever he was down, and he would do the same for her. **_We've been through so many things!_** she thought. **_Surely he must like you back!_**

Then she decided that she had dwelled in her thoughts long enough and went out of the room. Viper entered the living room and looked around. She noticed some pictures on the mantle. They were old pictures of the soothsayer in her early days, and a few pictures of her family.

But a certain picture caught her eye. It was a picture of the soothsayer holding a little white peacock's wing as he was walking to school. _That must be Shen_, she realized. _He looked so innocent as a young peacock._

She looked at the picture for a few more moments. Viper saw that his eyes were wide, like he was nervous. Then she thought about the Shen she had met in person. He certainly didn't seem anything like the young peacock she was looking at. _Gee, _ she thought. _Either Shen had a tragic life, or an incident in his life made him evil. Maybe if that incident never occurred, he may have been a good person. _After all, it seemed like the soothsayer loved him, even to the very end. Viper assumed that Shen also loved her back. _Maybe I should ask the soothsayer about this,_ Viper thought to herself, and decided to head towards the kitchen, where she heard everyone else talking.

"Viper!" called Crane. "I was wondering where you were. Are you OK?"

Viper started feeling fluttery again. _**Don't be silly**** Viper, he's only asking if you're OK...sheesh.**_

"Oh, um, I'm fine," she said innocently. "Did I miss anything?"

"You missed my noodle-slurping contest between me and Monkey!" Po said sadly.

"Oh dear," said Viper, and she laughed.

"I know. It was intense," Monkey said.

Tigress was eating her dinner and looked up at Viper. "What were you doing in the room?"

"Well...I wasn't exactly in the guest room. I was really more in the living room. You know, the one with the chair and fireplace? Yeah...so I was coming to the kitchen, and I saw pictures standing on the mantle, and so I went to check them out. And you know what? I saw old pictures of the soothsayer."

"Did she appear a lot younger in those pictures?" asked Monkey. "Or are they recent photos?"

"Oh, they're old pictures all right," Viper said. "I also saw old pictures of Shen, and he didn't look like the one we met."

"That's because his reasoning was different back then. But I wonder why he would become to be so evil...and how he did."

_That's what I was thinking!_ thought Po. There was a silence as Viper, Tigress, and Po thought about what Monkey had said. Crane and Mantis were having their own conversation when they heard silence from everyone else and stopped talking. Then Mantis broke the ice and said, "What's going on?"

"Oh, we were just talking about Shen," Tigress said.

"Shen?" a soft voice said. Everyone turned to see the soothsayer, who was about to serve tea.

"Um, yeah..." Po said sheepishly. "Didn't you like, used to work for him?"

"I once did," she replied as she set down the teapot. "I was appointed as his nanny. His parents let me take care of him for practically his whole life. They never got to see their son very often, and so he always thought of me as his mother."

"I feel bad for him," Viper said sadly. "Maybe if he hadn't been so isolated from his parents, he might have become a good person."

"Indeed," the soothsayer agreed as she took a seat. "I did take care of him very often. But the love that he needed could only come from his parents, so the love I gave him cannot replace those absent feelings for his parents. I am merely a caretaker, a nanny."

"But it's not your fault," said Po.

"Not necessarily," she said. "Times were different back then. I also used to go by the name Jun, but not anymore. Everyone I know now just knows me as the soothsayer."

"I see..." Mantis said.

"Could we call you that?" asked Po. "At least now we can call you by a name."

"Go ahead." She chuckled. "Perhaps you would all like to hear a story."

"Storytime!" Po said happily.

"OK, I'm in," said Monkey.

"This is going to be a long one," Jun warned. "Are you sure?"

"We're sure," Mantis said.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," she said and stood up. She gestured to them to do the same and follow her. Everyone followed suit into the living room, where Jun was starting to ignite a fire in the fireplace.

"It feels warm," Tigress noted, and smiled.

"Feel free to take a seat," Jun said. She sat down in a rocking chair, which was facing away from the fireplace. Monkey headed for the chair, and Mantis sat next to him. Po and Tigress went to the sofa and sat down together. Viper and Crane sat down on the floor in front of the soothsayer. Tigress leaned on Po, and he put an arm around her.

Crane noticed Viper was looking at something and tried looking in her direction and saw Po putting his arm around Tigress. _Is she looking at them because she wants me to do the same?_ he asked himself.

He looked at Mantis and gestured to Viper. Mantis pointed at Po, and then pointed at Viper. Crane understood and turned back. He tried putting a wing around Viper, but hesitated the first couple times. Finally, on the third try, he finally put his arm around her, and she looked at him with a raised eyebrow, but then smiled. Crane smiled back at her and his eyes looked at Mantis, who gave a thumbs up.

"Are you all ready?" Jun asked.

Everyone nodded. "OK," she said. "I'm going to tell you the story of Shen's life, from before his childhood to his adulthood. This is how the story goes..."

**And that was the end of part 1! Yay! :) If you've ever read the Redwall series you'll know what I mean about having 3 parts in a book. ****I'm hoping that I'll be able to post the next chapter in the near future. If it's been a while and I still haven't posted it yet, just know that I never abandon my stories. I will always strive to finish stories that I started. Maybe you could just give me a gentle reminder and I'll remember to keep it in mind. ;)**


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